The Education of the girl child
Witten by Adeyemi Anuoluwapo Precious
Year 12 (2020/2021)
“Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.”
Education can be used to tackle poverty, illiteracy and ignorance. It helps to build, develop, enlighten, broaden and expand our knowledge on nearly everything. Indeed if education were to be compared to a weapon there would be none like it.
According to the Universal Declaration of the Human Rights [UDHR] “Every child, be it a girl or a boy must be allowed access to free and fair education.” This alongside other rights were established by the United Nations Organization [UNO] to protect human rights, life and properties, all over the world. Is the girl child really enjoying these fundamental inalienable rights especially in the third world? Consider your environment critically before you answer this question. Efforts should be put in place to ensure an improved educational system that will favour the girl child.
Emphasis has been laid on the necessity and importance of the education of the girl child since the 90s. But has the emphasis been result oriented? Most of the reasons why the girl child education is denied or cut short are due to culture, poverty and illiteracy. Some cultures believe that the female children are mere goods and chattel that have no inheritance in the family and can easily be sold off at perceived adulthood. The high rate of illiteracy and sheer ignorance among people in rural areas of Africa, Asia and Latin America results in little or no education of female children.
Every successful and thriving society today has more than 60% of its wealth from working class women. Even political offices are being held by women. We now see women operating as CEOs, MDs, Directors, Large, medium and small business/organization owners. Shuvie K iningi of Burundi, Shie – Work Zewde of Ethiopia, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf of Liberia, Joyce Bamda of M alawi, Samba Panza of central African Republic, Ameera Gurid Fakin of Mauritius, Okonjo – Iwela of Nigeria, The list is endless. These women of substance have proved the advocate of this barbaric, outdated and ignoble culture that female children are nothing but disposable chattel(s) wrong. As a matter of urgency, educating a girl child should be given priority in any government’s agenda.
In as much as it might seem like a herculean task, governments of nations in collaboration with NGOs and civil societies should be committed to giving education to the girl child. The era of the place of women is in the kitchen has gone with the wind. Remember the old proverb; “If you educate a man you educate an individual, but if you educate a woman you educate a nation” Girls that have been denied education and given out in marriage grow up to become ordinary house wives and baby breeders while the few ones that are privileged to be educated grow up to be women of substance and high calibre individuals in all walks of life. In fact they are movers and shakers that keep their respective nations running. They have proved beyond reasonable doubt that “what a man can do a woman can do better” But if these angels of development, progress, growth and peace were denied formal education, where would they have been today?
Educating a girl child must be a universal declaration which must be enforced by the United Nations as a body and all the affiliated countries.
To achieve the desired educational system that will favour all especially the girl child, the government and its agents should ensure a safe and secured environment and society. The sex – boundary jobs must be abolished in al facets of life. As a matter of fact, weavers must be given to female child in attaining equal status with her male counterpart. Finally, the UNO through its chatter must make it mandatory for all its member-nations to increase their budget on education from the present 27% to minimum of 30% so as to accommodate the training of the girl chid.
Photo Credit: Francisco Venancio/Unsplash
